Taxpayers to have their say on cuts in Wolverhampton City Council budget

It is believed to be the first time any local authority in the country has used the software, called Simalto, for its entire budget and will mean residents get to say how they would make around £60m of cuts over the next five years.

The consultation is intended to demonstrate the difficult decisions councillors will have to make over the coming years in the wake of huge spending cuts, coupled with four successive years of council tax freezes.

The city council’s finance boss Councillor Andrew Johnson said: “We want to help local people get a clearer view of the challenges we face as a council – and we also want a better understanding of what their priorities are.”

The coalition government has so far given councils funding the equivalent of either a two per cent or one per cent increase in council tax each year, but only if they keep the rates the same.

Ian Davenport

July 13, 2013 9:29 am

When councils get rid of the spend at the end culture, then £millions will be freed up for bigger projects. Every department has it's annual budget. At the end of the year, any left over cash is frantically spent so they don't lose it in the following year. The money cannot be transferred but it must be spent. Why not establish a slush fund which departments can then bid for to carry out projects or use on unexpected works. Major projects from 5yr planned maintenance projects could be bought forward so easing expenditure when things get tight. Easy really isn't it.